A Day in the Life / October 30

[morrobay1990]

Title: A Day in the Life / October 30
Author: morrobay1990
Warning:
Genre: canon/1990
Word count: 360
Disclaimer: They are AP's
♥ Jack














Junior called him tonight after dinner, asking him could he please do her a favor; Kurt had been suddenly called back to the rig, and she needed Ennis to come to her house tomorrow night and either stay and give out candy, or take her two little ones out trick or treating around the neighborhood.

He immediately picked taking Junior’s kids out… her youngest, five year old Meg, had Ennis wrapped around her little finger, but didn’t know it was called that, wasn’t spoiled, she just loved him, always had something new to show him when he came over, and would grab his hand and pull him down the hall to her room to see her latest treasure and to explain it all in great detail...sometimes a rock with a bit of shiny quartz that she’d found outside, sometimes the latest outfit her mother had made for her favorite stuffed bear...last time it was her Halloween costume, of course…a princess, of course.

And he felt a sort of affinity with six year old Ben, who already had some of Ennis’s traits…he was quiet and a little withdrawn, and spent a fair amount of time by himself. It had been in the back of Ennis’s mind to make more time for him, see if he wanted to talk...or something.

Since Ennis was the same way, and had been since childhood, he wasn’t sure if Ben being like that was a problem, like Junior said, or if it was just Ben. Ennis himself had always hated being pressured to talk, felt awkward and uncomfortable in social situations, so naturally stayed away from that sort of thing, and he didn’t want Ben to feel the way he had felt so often in his own childhood, and beyond. The first time he felt comfortable...the only person he’d felt easy talking to, had been Jack...not even Alma...not even in the beginning...

Before they hung up the phone, Ennis asked Junior what Ben was going to dress up to be, and upon hearing that he would be a cowboy, decided then and there that he would go over a little early, help him get ready without the girls around, just the two men...maybe have a talk...maybe not.

Comments

Good Man

[joetheone.livejournal.com]

Taking the kids out trick or treating is a great joy and a great privileged and something we have to cherish because the time goes by so quickly that we won't want to miss it. I like how he sees his grandchildren and wants to do something with them. Joe

Re: Good Man

[morrobay1990.livejournal.com]

He is a good man. I believe he is the type of man who would love his grandchildren and be involved in their lives.

Maybe one of the things he realizes as he thinks back on his life is how he wasn't there for his kids like he should have been.

So many things I wish I could have a "do over" for in my life...

thanks, Joe.

[gwylliondream.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's so sweet.

I hope Ennis got some comfort from doing for his grandkids what he didn't do for his own.

[morrobay1990.livejournal.com]

I hope he did, too. If he was real, that is...'cause you know he's not real...well, I guess he could be real...Ok, I think he's real...

[mazaher.livejournal.com]

Beautiful as ever. I can readily believe that Ennis (who already was a very unusually good father for the times) is going to be an extra-good grandfather, with the added bonus of grandparents i.e. that little bit of leisure and detachment that allows for best-tuned attention.
There is one detail however that, whole truth be told, made me cringe: "...a princess, of course". Until girls will be assumed to want to dress as princesses rather than cowboys, and boys will be assumed to want to dress as cowboys rather than princesses, human beings of whatever gender won't be out of the woods, and tragic stories like Jack's and Ennis' (or any other non-traditional pairing one may mention) will keep repeating, because stereotypes are the death of free choice and a crippling chronic illness for tolerance.
I'd like to see Ennis dealing with more creative choices in his grandkids =)
Thank you all the same for another pearl in the shining row of this series!

[morrobay1990.livejournal.com]

sorry to make you cringe!

But what about girls who want to be princesses? And boys who want to be cowboys? Should they now be made to feel awkward, go against their nature, to please...who?

Ennis had a non-traditional pairing to deal with...maybe his grandchildren are traditional...surely nothing to be ashamed of. I hope.

There are stories out there where his grandchildren are gay, (although I've never seen one done about a lesbian grandchild) but not in this one...

[mazaher.livejournal.com]

"But what about girls who want to be princesses?"
Agreed. My problem is with the "of course" part!
The whole point is that *nobody* should ever "be made to feel awkward, go against their nature".

[morrobay1990.livejournal.com]

when I said "of course" I meant it to pertain only to this little girl in this story, not to be an all-encompassing statement of what every girl should want...here, Meg is a princess..."of course" she is.

I'm really glad you pointed it out, and please continue to do so...because even though I didn't write it that way, it shows how even a small phrase can be interpreted by others....we still may not agree that it was the right way to say it, but I love hearing how you read it...

thanks, as always, for coming along.

[mazaher.livejournal.com]

And thank *you* very much for making the trip possible!
I love each stop.